White House Opposes Resolution On Armenian 'Genocide'

January 31, 2007 -- U.S. Ambassador to Turkey Ross Wilson says the White House will actively oppose a resolution in the U.S. Congress to recognize the deaths of 1.5 million Armenians at the end of World War I as "genocide."

Lawmakers introduced the resolution on January 30. The administration of U.S. President George W. Bush believes debate on the topic could damage relations with Turkey.

Wilson's statement referred only to the "tragic events" of that era. Turkey denies the deaths amounted to genocide.

(AP)

Examining History

CALL IT GENOCIDE? Questions surrounding the mass killings of Armenians at the beginning of the last century continue to dominate relations between Armenia and Turkey. In April,
Ankara proposed conducting a joint Armenian-Turkish investigation into the mass killings and deportations of Armenians during World War I. Turkish leaders suggested that the two countries set up a joint commission of historians to determine whether the massacres carried out between 1915 and 1917 constituted genocide. Armenia, however, insisted it would continue to seek international recognition and condemnation of what it says was a deliberate attempt at exterminating an entire people....(more)